Button's Mill, Diss
Encyclopedia
Jay's Mill, Button's Mill or Victoria Road Mill is a tower mill
at Diss
, Norfolk
, England
which has been truncated and converted to residential accommodation.
at Stuston Road. The mill was built with eight sails, but these were blown off on 28 November 1836. Jay's post mill at Stuston Road had been blown down in a gale four day earlier. The tower mill was repaired by millwright
Henry Rush, but now only sported four sails; a replacement post mill was also built.
Thomas Jay died on 3 April 1847 and the mill was run by his widow Sarah. It was offered for sale by auction
on 5 September 1853 at the King's Head Hotel, Diss but remained unsold. It was again offered for sale October in 1856 and purchased by Michael Hawes. He was succeeded by William Hawes who retired in 1880. The mill was sold by auction at the Kings Head Hotel and bought by John Button. Button had worked various post mills around Diss and been in business for 24 years at that time. A steam engine had been installed as auxiliary power by this date. In 1892, roller milling equipment was added. The steam engine was later replaced by an oil engine.
A sail was lost in 1928, by which time the mill was being worked by John B Button. The mill worked on a single pair of sails until 1929 when the fantail was damaged. The remaining pair of sails, which had previously been on Mount Pleasant Mill, Framlingham
, Suffolk
, were sold c1936 and found further use at Terling Mill
, Essex
. They were transported to Terling
by rail and completed their journey by horse and cart. The cap was removed and the mill truncated by one storey. It was then used as part of a saw mill. In 1968, the mill was purchased and converted to residential accommodation.
s were driven overdrift.
Reference for above:-
Tower mill
A tower mill is a type of windmill which consists of a brick or stone tower, on top of which sits a roof or cap which can be turned to bring the sails into the wind....
at Diss
Diss
Diss is a town in Norfolk, England close to the border with the neighbouring East Anglian county of Suffolk.The town lies in the valley of the River Waveney, around a mere that covers . The mere is up to deep, although there is another of mud, making it one of the deepest natural inland lakes...
, Norfolk
Norfolk
Norfolk is a low-lying county in the East of England. It has borders with Lincolnshire to the west, Cambridgeshire to the west and southwest and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the North Sea coast and to the north-west the county is bordered by The Wash. The county...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
which has been truncated and converted to residential accommodation.
History
Button's Mill was built c1817 on what was then Diss Common for Thomas Jay who had purchased the land that the mill was built on in that year. Jay also owned a post millPost mill
The post mill is the earliest type of European windmill. The defining feature is that the whole body of the mill that houses the machinery is mounted on a single vertical post, around which it can be turned to bring the sails into the wind. The earliest post mills in England are thought to have...
at Stuston Road. The mill was built with eight sails, but these were blown off on 28 November 1836. Jay's post mill at Stuston Road had been blown down in a gale four day earlier. The tower mill was repaired by millwright
Millwright
A millwright is a craftsman or tradesman engaged with the construction and maintenance of machinery.Early millwrights were specialist carpenters who erected machines used in agriculture, food processing and processing lumber and paper...
Henry Rush, but now only sported four sails; a replacement post mill was also built.
Thomas Jay died on 3 April 1847 and the mill was run by his widow Sarah. It was offered for sale by auction
Auction
An auction is a process of buying and selling goods or services by offering them up for bid, taking bids, and then selling the item to the highest bidder...
on 5 September 1853 at the King's Head Hotel, Diss but remained unsold. It was again offered for sale October in 1856 and purchased by Michael Hawes. He was succeeded by William Hawes who retired in 1880. The mill was sold by auction at the Kings Head Hotel and bought by John Button. Button had worked various post mills around Diss and been in business for 24 years at that time. A steam engine had been installed as auxiliary power by this date. In 1892, roller milling equipment was added. The steam engine was later replaced by an oil engine.
A sail was lost in 1928, by which time the mill was being worked by John B Button. The mill worked on a single pair of sails until 1929 when the fantail was damaged. The remaining pair of sails, which had previously been on Mount Pleasant Mill, Framlingham
Framlingham
Framlingham is a market town and civil parish in the Suffolk Coastal District of Suffolk, England. Commonly referred to as "Fram" by the locals, it is of Anglo-Saxon origin and is mentioned in the Domesday Book. It has a population of 3,114 at the 2001 census...
, Suffolk
Suffolk
Suffolk is a non-metropolitan county of historic origin in East Anglia, England. It has borders with Norfolk to the north, Cambridgeshire to the west and Essex to the south. The North Sea lies to the east...
, were sold c1936 and found further use at Terling Mill
Terling Windmill
Terling Windmill is a grade II listed Smock mill at Terling, Essex, England which has been converted to residential use.-History:Terling Windmill was built here c1818. It is said to have been originally built at Cressing c1770, but this has neither been proved nor disproved...
, Essex
Essex
Essex is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East region of England, and one of the home counties. It is located to the northeast of Greater London. It borders with Cambridgeshire and Suffolk to the north, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent to the South and London to the south west...
. They were transported to Terling
Terling
Terling is a village in the county of Essex, England, between the town of Witham and the villages of Great Leighs and Hatfield Peverel. The village was mentioned in the Domesday book...
by rail and completed their journey by horse and cart. The cap was removed and the mill truncated by one storey. It was then used as part of a saw mill. In 1968, the mill was purchased and converted to residential accommodation.
Description
Button's Mill was a six storey tower mill with a domed cap which was winded by a fantail. It was built with eight sails but rebuilt with four double Patent sails in 1837. The sails had a span of 66 feet (20.12 m) and were 9 feet (2.74 m) wide. They were carried on a cast iron windshaft. The wooden brake wheel was 11 in 6 in (3.51 m) diameter, with iron segment teeth. The four pairs of French Burr millstoneMillstone
Millstones or mill stones are used in windmills and watermills, including tide mills, for grinding wheat or other grains.The type of stone most suitable for making millstones is a siliceous rock called burrstone , an open-textured, porous but tough, fine-grained sandstone, or a silicified,...
s were driven overdrift.
Millers
- Thomas Jay 1817-1847
- Sarah Jay 1847-56
- William Michael Hawes 1856-80
- John Button 1880-83
- John & William Edward Button 1883-1922
- John B Button -1929
Reference for above:-
External links
- Windmill World webpage on Button's Mill.